If you have been a part of a church for any time, you know that volunteers are necessary for its functioning. While staff members often take on the tasks of overall vision and planning, volunteers are needed to make those plans happen. Some volunteers love roles requiring less skill, such as stuffing VBS packets, while others thrive when they can bring their occupational skills to the church, such as serving on a finance team. 

Volunteers allow churches to function on a smaller budget and allocate funds for other ministerial functions. Just think if a church had to pay the going rate for every children’s teacher and helper. Or if the church outsourced an event planner and staff to plan and execute every special event the church hosts. The costs would be astronomical.  

As Christ followers, we should all long to serve God, the church, and our fellow brothers and sisters, as it is part of our calling. Serving and volunteering not only helps the church but also builds the spirit of the person who is serving. It’s so fantastic how God designed the functioning of serving! 

But sometimes a problem arises. What happens when a volunteer puts in an excessive amount of work? 

Should those leading the church just assume that person loves to serve? When should leaders ask the question, “Are we taking advantage of someone’s time and talents as a volunteer?” Ouch! Most leaders would never intentionally take advantage of a volunteer, but sometimes, situations get to a point where we realize something is wrong.

For instance, a person could begin serving, realize they love it, and start serving more until they realize they are exhausted. In other cases, leadership may ask a volunteer to execute a task due to the volunteer’s particular skill set, and the task becomes a much larger project than anticipated. These types of situations can bring up many unpleasant feelings for the volunteer, such as bitterness or anger, which are sins. Volunteers will often not even know they are in too deep or how to ask for help.

So, what does a leader do? 

Church leaders must be aware of volunteer work and check in with volunteers regularly. While all situations are different, I think there are two major approaches to consider when assessing a volunteer’s work.  

The first approach is to reduce the work of the volunteer. You have seen it repeatedly; volunteers take on so many roles that they become worn out. The person might be leading a small group, serving on the finance committee, acting as a praise team member, teaching Bible studies, and helping restock visitor packets each week. While these might be initially rewarding, this person is doing too much, and it eventually catches up with them. These volunteers can often convince themselves that they enjoy doing everything, or worse, believe they are the only ones who can do the task. When someone volunteers too much, they may actually (and unintentionally) be stealing someone else’s opportunity to serve and grow.

A good leader will be able to help this volunteer see how they are overworked and have no time for rest and then help the volunteer step away from some of their duties. Even better, a leader will not allow others to get into situations like this, but hindsight is always 20/20, and there is enough grace to go around. Empathy, love, and gratitude are some of the best ways to approach these types of situations. We all deserve rest. Actually, God commands it (Heb 4:9-11), and some folks just need help from their brothers and sisters to get there.

The second approach is to pay the volunteer. This situation often occurs when a volunteer is serving in an area where they have a particular expertise. For instance, a person could work 20-30 hours a week coordinating children’s ministry curriculum and activities. This person may not feel overwhelmed, but they could begin to feel taken advantage of. At this point, or before, leadership should recognize the value the person brings to the church and offer a part-time or full-salaried position to pay the worker a rightful wage.

Another situation might be when a person is volunteering for a short contract task. These types of volunteers might be tradespeople or artists of some sort. Tasks could look like a construction contractor taking on the oversight of a building project, an IT specialist working on a website, a graphic designer creating slides/logos/bulletins for the church, a landscaper redesigning the flower beds, or an artist working on an installation for the church. While some individuals will not serve in their area of expertise for various reasons, many of these people love to give their talents to support the church. With this kind of volunteer, it is important to understand that these people are often paid for the work they are providing the church. When a task takes up so much time that the volunteer is now using billable hours to complete it, it might be time to discuss compensation. Sometimes, volunteers will bill at a reduced rate, but the church should not allow someone to work to such a degree without any kind of pay.

In these types of situations, leadership should, when possible, begin with a proactive stance at the start of a project to determine some sort of payment agreement. Whether an agreement was set beforehand or not, leadership should regularly check in with the volunteer worker and make necessary adjustments along the way. Sometimes, paying a volunteer worker is the blessing they need to make ends meet. God designed humans to work. Work brings personal value and allows people to support themselves. Not only is paying a worker considerate, but it is also biblical (Deut 24:15).  

The biggest takeaway is to check in with volunteers regularly. Ask questions and be ready to make helpful changes so that everyone can rest or receive proper respect through compensation. And please remember to check in with other leaders (and their spouses), paid or volunteer; sometimes, they are the ones who need the most help.